Bengaluru: When the Union Government announced demonetisation last November one of the stated objectives was to move towards a cashless society. But for Ola customers, it is prudent to keep cash handy, lest their bookings get cancelled!
For the past few months, the regular consumers of Ola have been complaining that the auto drivers cancel the booking on knowing that the commuter would pay through Ola money, an e-wallet option on the app.
Vivek Gupta, a regular Ola customer said, “I have been using the Ola app for the past two years. But for the past few months the drivers have been cancelling the booking on knowing that we would choose e-wallet option for payment.”
“Sometimes, it results in verbal jousts with the drivers. We have to rush to the nearest ATM and if you pay Rs 500, for example against the bill of Rs 200. They then press for the change,” he added.
“The availability of city autos is less during the night and even if you find one, it is hard on your pocket, as they refuse to charge the amount shown on the rate meters. I usually book the Ola auto, but when they refuse on account of refusal of payments through e-wallet, it gets difficult to book another ride,” said Adwait, who regularly books Ola ride from AMR Tech Park at Bommanahalli to HSR Layout.
Payment getting delayed: Drivers
The Ola drivers, however, said they insist on change as they often lack cash. We tried speaking to one of the drivers of the Ola who on the condition of anonymity said, “We are paid after a week and sometimes after a fortnight. As per the company's policy, the payments have to be transferred to the bank’s account within 2-3 days, but it hardly happens. Unfortunately, we are compelled to cancel the ride.”
The driver said that he earned Rs 1,200 through Ola money and he is left with only Rs 34 in cash, which is not enough to refuel the rickshaw. While speaking to Deccan Chronicle, several drivers alleged that the reimbursement of their daily incomes is not done on time.
“We usually call the Ola support and other than their assurance, we do not get anything. Sometimes, I find it difficult to feed my family and clear personal dues,” complained the driver working with Ola for the past one year. However, we did not receive the response from the aggregator's representative.
